Latin or Arabic?
Being born in France, the first language I learned to write was French with its Latin alphabet. My passion for Arabic calligraphy started later when I was a student.
I was attracted by the harmony and the flow of the Arabic letters and got offered the possibility to be trained by a Master. I focused initially on the Diwani style for which I received an intensive training. When I felt more comfortable with Diwani, I tried the Koufi style which is more geometric. In fact, this style is usually integrating architectural elements.
example
Full of imagination, I noticed that Arabic letters written with Koufi style were showing geometrical similarities with Latin letters.
The letter “noun” can look like an “i”
The letter “ain” can look like an “e”
The letter “waw” can look like a “g”
The letter “alif” can look like a “l”
etc.
And for the letters that are not so similar, I noticed that you could split the Arabic letters into basic elements that can be combined subtly to appear like a Latin letter.
Take away:
Arabic calligraphy has a rich panel of styles and scripts
Calligraphers with imagination can be very playful
It is possible to write a text with Latin letters and make it look like Arabic
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